Sharla - Family Secrets

2018 Sancia Patches of clouds framed the full moon, with the stars in the back blinking in the black velvet sky. Below stood the Sancia Division, a school for the gifted and talented children of Sancia; Chaldia Training and Boarding Institute for the gifted. “For a school that’s been around for over four hundred years, you would think they would upgrade to modern times and put in some elevators.” A student said as he and his friends carried in the last of their furniture into the room next door to room 18 A. "Enter at your own Peril" greeted visitors to room 18A. The room door was slightly ajar to reveal a studio-like environment. High tempo reggae music with a Latin mix played in the background. The kitchen was nice and spacious, some gym equipment was laid to one side of the space. A group gathered as they watched a little rival competition between two roommates. A couch with some bean bags of various colours in the middle. A petite olive-toned girl stood looking through the large open glass window that was to the back of the living quarters. It gave a breathtaking view of the outside world. Lush mighty green trees with majestic mountains. This high up the breeze was cool to the touch. This floor plus two other floors were above ground while others were below. This room would not be complete without a place to sleep. Five closed room doors were down a well-lit passageway, each room had the letters M, S, N, T and L on each door. A laundry area, with a washing machine and shelves of fresh towels and washing products, was between two bathrooms on the left of the passageway. A dining room table was next to the kitchen with some assorted fruits and cookies in separate containers on it. Two male figures sat around the table with several books and their laptops. "We are the only ones that made it," exclaimed fifteen-year-old Nico, pausing mid raised, as he completed the last set of push-ups for the night. A round of applause was given from the group before they went to their own dorms, not before stopping by the fridge to help themselves to a cold S drink. It had the right amount of fruits and vegetables and a cocktail to help give you a rush of strength, energy and vitality. “Was that 300 push-ups dude?” Sharla asked. “Yeah, nothing much to it. I know you’re trying to pass me. But you can't,” Nico said as he kissed his biceps. Sharla smirked at him. She was dark-toned, the same age and height as her rival and was well-proportioned in all the right places. She had a unique choice for her hairstyle. It was half long and half shaved. She was tattooed from head to toe with symbols representing her personal victories, achievements, and her family. There was still some empty space available to mark future moments. She loved competitions, especially when competing with him. She sported a red bandanna to cover a scar she had on her forehead, believing it was a birth defect she inherited. This faded over time, but she still wore the bandana, claiming it was her signature look. She was able to match Nico at his game. With his six feet, athletic, strongly built frame, Nico was now smiling and flashing his pearly whites. He began flexing his muscles in the mirror, watching her in the mirror as sweat rolled off his face to his bare chest. "Ewe...You should go shower and cover up those things before you poke someone's eye out," Sharla said as she threw a towel at him landing on his red-dark hair while grabbing a towel for herself. "I know you like what you see Sharla, you're just playing hard to get, right Liah?" Nico said as he turned to see the petite olive-toned angel-like beauty staring out the dark wooden framed open bay windows. Her eyes glazed over as the night breeze gently blew strands of her long black hair across her face, she seemed to have drifted off into another of her visions. "Yeah, I wonder what other trials we will have to fulfil before we are given our real task," said Tico. He sported a punk-rocker Mohawk hairstyle which seems to change colour by his mood. He closed the Bible and the hieroglyphs' book which was filled with years of markings and preferred scripture highlights noting where he reached. "I think we have to be patient and wait for them to tell us what we need to do next," Marlo said, closing his laptop, then grabbed a red apple off the mahogany table. Then plopped himself into a green beanbag seat in the shared dorm space. Marlo was naturally gifted with a computer brain, which meant that he only needed to look things over once and practice to know how any and everything operated, while others had to study hard and practice daily. It was thanks to one of his inventions, they were able to surpass the other fifty groups paired together to be the elite group. This meant rivalry was still present in the school for the gifted minds. "Hey Liah, what are you doing?" Sharla asked, jumping to a squatting position on the window ledge beside her, while towel drying her shampooed hair. "Earth to Liah...is anybody home?" Sharla asked, waving her hand in front of Liah's face. Watching her face glow from the moonlight and the bright stars in the night sky, made Liah's eyes sparkle a shade of emerald. Shaking her head as if coming out of a daydream, responded. "I...I was thinking that we are at the end of our training. It seems that for years, we have surpassed all our predecessors and we are still alive..." Liah paused. Looking up at the star-filled sky, she jumped down from the window ledge and walked to the middle of the living room, she stopped, staring back at them with a gleam in her eye. "Come on Liah, spill already. I can see the wheels turning in that beautiful mind of yours." Marlo said smiling at her. She smiled and rubbed her hands together and got very animated. "Okay, do you remember the story Father White told us when we were seven?" Liah asked excitedly. Everyone seemed to be searching their minds for what Liah could possibly be thinking of now. "I'm afraid you are going to have to be more specific, Liah. You forget that we grew up on various tales which these priests feed us with constantly," Sharla said, bringing one leg up to her chest as she changed her sitting position on the window ledge. "I was thinking of the one about the lost swords. In the great battle of good vs. evil thousands of years ago between Michael and Lucifer. The sword of Elohim and Apollyon, maybe we could find them," she said. As she waited for the lesson to click, Liah shifted on her feet as the group looked her up and down. “I mean if we could find the swords then we could end this never-ending battle for the soul of mankind once and for all, restoring the world to peace," she explained. They probably think I'm crazy, thought Liah as she glanced at her four friend’s faces, with puzzled expressions. A furry tabby cat walked from the tree branch that was close to the roof of the open window. He jumped on the window ledge passed Sharla, then walked over to Liah. She picked up the white and orange tabby cat that was now circling and purring at her feet. She rubbed her hand over the cat's fur then returned to view the starry sky. “I know you know what I am talking about Samjoy,” she whispered while petting the cat that took a liking to her from one of their previous mission trips. She found him in an abandoned town in a rural part of Sancia which was overrun with demons and witches as they tried to make a comeback after near extinction. She felt there was something special about him but couldn’t quite put her finger on it. So far she knew he was fearless, bright and strong. She couldn’t believe her eyes, but she swore she saw him lift a big chunk of debris off another kitten that was trapped in the rubble with him. The cat ran away when she tried to pick him up the first day they met. But Samjoy chose to follow her from a distance until he knew he could trust her, or so she thought. "Hmm! I see. That is true we have passed all other tests where others have failed. Perhaps we could try to find the swords. We could destroy Apollyon and return Elohim to Michael." Marlo said, turning Liah to face him. "But this time we learn from others' mistakes and not create the same ones," He added. "Yes! This might be possible; after all, we are the most gifted, brightest and skilled beings in this school. I think it would benefit us to do our own research. We can gather all the intelligence the priests have and review what others have done in the past. Then, we can plot a course to find the patterns and map out the route that we create from the research," Marlo concluded. "Yes! I think you're onto something here Marlo," Nico said. "Hey, this was Liah's idea, not mine," Marlo replied. "Well it doesn't matter because they may never give it to us," Tico responded, who seemed to be in one of his foul moods. "Aren't you the killer of dreams, Tico? Why can't you be positive for once in your life?" Nico asked. "In case you haven't noticed, I am the one that always brings you guys back to earth when you start flying off the wagon," Tico snickered. Knock, Knock "What are you children up to?" Father White asked as he entered their dorm room. "We were wondering about the story you told us years ago Father. The one about the Sword of Elohim," Liah replied. "Ah! Yes, the lost sword of Elohim. What would you want to hear that you have not already heard?" Father White asked. "We want to know the details that were not written. We want the details of what others have done in the past..." "Why do you want to know about it? Are you planning to look for the sword?" Father White questioned. "We merely want to be entertained by a story we don't already know inside out. It’s just for educational purposes. We know you would not want us to go searching for the sword," Tico replied. "I wonder what hidden secrets could help me locate the sword. After all, if I were to locate the sword, then I would become famous and be someone society would approve of, and not just someone acknowledged by my peers and the priests. The elite side of the family treated mom as a nobody. Holding influential seats in politics, only looking out for themselves. I would show them one day that a no-body can be someone of influence too, he thought smiling to himself. Everyone turned to see if it was really Tico that spoke. "Did I say that out loud? Ignore everything...carry on Father," Tico said. The group kept quiet when he looked away from their raised eyebrows. Father White scratched his white-haired head, then took a seat on one of the children's chairs and began his tale. "It was written that the sword of God was hidden in a secret world; a world that was inhabited by immortals that were given charges over portals and gateways to earth. The only way to locate this sword was to travel to a planet called Baryelan. We have discovered that this planet is over five hundred light-years from Earth and is in the Neither Dimension. There is nothing in this world that is fast enough to allow a man to travel that great distance and live. “What about using a portal? Wasn’t there something about when three planets align? Tico interrupted. “There is another prophecy that says when three planets align at the turn of a blue moon a doorway would light the way to its discovery. To find this doorway, one had to enter from another hidden portal that would only appear once every 1000 years and open at midday in one of God's forgotten locations plagued in the past by warlocks and witches, where Satan was set to raise his headquarters. The sword would only accept the purest of hearts and can only be held by one who commits their entire life to Christ. Their sins must be as white as snow and only by the blood of the Lamb can they be cleansed.” “But is there anyone on earth that is truly pure?”Liah asked. “I would like to believe that there is such a person Liah,” Father replied. He paused briefly rubbing his chin before continuing. “For every good, there is evil, and thus the sword of Apollyon that was forged in heaven too, but over time after the rebellion and the fall of Lucifer and his angels, his sword mangled with evil in the bottomless pit, is used by the strongman to bring about the end of the world. If one could destroy Apollyon, then one could save the world from the impending doom destined to destroy mankind. Many have searched high and low, thinking they too have found the secret to its path. The last group only discovered another clue..." Father White said, distracted by the sudden peck on the window by a woodpecker. The night had given way to a new dawn. Father White glanced at his watch, noting time had gotten away from him again. “Children, it’s time to get some rest, before your duties,” Father White said as he was getting up. “Father, please continue. We have come this far to stop in the middle. I promise we will not slack up on our duties,” Marlo said as he drew closer. Father White sat back in his chair and pulled on his beard. "Okay, so why does this doorway appear every one thousand years and what is this other clue?" Nico asked, more curious than before, trying to regain Father White's attention. "Don't worry about answering that Father White," Liah said. "Try to remember Nico; this was on our final exam last semester," Liah replied. "In case you haven't noticed, history was not my forte. Besides I don't recall reading anything about one thousand years...perhaps I dozed off in that class," Nico explained. "Why don't you recap for him then Liah?" Father White suggested. "Yes, Father White, according to legend, this gateway known as the Celestial doorway, opens every one thousand years for celestial beings from other worlds to take part in fighting demons that were sent on earth to conquer it while others came and say for every good deed they do, they will have a place in the stars, and who wouldn't want to be among the stars?" Liah replied. "So what you are saying is: there are aliens that visit us every one thousand years. Make some sort of change to our world, and then return to theirs with the hope of when they die, they become a star to continue their life being a light in the sky before burning out themselves. Dying once again," Nico rambled. "Ahm yeah, I guess," Liah said. "Anyway, Father White I believe you have more to say," Liah finished. "Yes Liah, thank you for that brief history," he replied before continuing his story. "They discovered that if you found one sword, you would find the other. However, it would be a mirror of the location that the other sword was located. It is said that the sheath of each sword has ancient hieroglyphs symbols written to hide them from anyone seeking their whereabouts. The last group found a clue leading them to the pyramids found in the great Gerkandi desert. The sword may be found when three planets align with the full moon showing a portal leading through a doorway created when Venus, Saturn and Earth aligned with the moon, which could only be seen at twilight. The holder of Elohim must be pure of heart and a child of God. It's said that the wielder of the dark sword is One that is consumed by the darkness of a particular bloodline and will be the sole holder of Apollyon and the one consumed of pure Light can hold Elohim...There is a riddle to solve this mystery...." Father White added. "What is this riddle you speak of Father White? And is this a physical doorway or a spiritual doorway?" Liah asked. "The riddle is... only one who is of the same seed of both light and dark can hold the sword. From one house and from one bloodline will one hold Apollyon and one hold Elohim, which bloodline is that?” Father White replied. “Also the doorway I was told is a physical doorway, so you should be able to see and feel it under the right conditions of course. But of course, there are many prophecies, who knows which is the correct one." He concluded. Father White sat back in his chair surveying each child's face filled with fascination and the idea of solving what seemed impossible for hundreds of years. Except for Liah who looked like she was not there. “Is everything alright Liah? You look like you're miles away a moment ago.” Father White asked. “Sure…it’s nothing really,” she replied. Sharla walked over and pulled Liah aside and whispered, "I think you saw something, what did you see?" "It’s nothing. How about you tell me about the nightmares you're having. I heard you screaming two nights ago. I want to help you Sharla, so please don't shut me out," Liah replied. "Look, it's nothing. Believe me, if there was something to tell, you would be the first to know it," Sharla answered. "Come on Liah, tell me what is going on with your vision?" she begged. Liah pondered for a moment if she should reveal all her vision to Sharla, after all, she was her best friend, why shouldn't she, Liah sighed and replied. "I believe we won't be able to find the swords on our own," Liah began. "What do you mean? We always solve our quest and more," Sharla said. "I know, but this is different. We are going to need to find someone called Renwar Vallée and Joy Wick and someone else. I can’t get a fix on her." "Renwar and Joy who?" Sharla questioned. "And why?" "From what I saw they are very important to solving this riddle Father White has given us." "So how do we find them? Are they here in Sancia?" Sharla questioned. "No...We have some travelling to do," Liah replied. "Well, you better let everyone know..." Sharla advised. "No! Not yet. There is something that we need to accomplish here first before we can leave Sancia." "Why do I get the feeling we are not going to like where this is going," Sharla mumbled. Smiling, Liah answered, "We need to break into the Bishop's office." "What! Exclaimed Sharla as everyone now turned to look at the pair. ***